Luke 1:26-38 New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
26 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, 33 and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” 34 But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” 35 And the angel said to her in reply, “The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. 36 And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; 37 for nothing will be impossible for God.” 38 Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
Comments
I think that as a child, there was always a part of me wondering and secretly hoping that it would happen to me. Not that I was anywhere near like Mary - but the thought that a beautiful, golden angel could appear out of nowhere in your place of quiet solitude and say, "You're all right. God sees you and I'm here as a sign and a grace."
It appeals to my "Four-ness" in the Enneagram. Fours are nicknamed "The Individualist." We believe that we are unique and that no one truly understands us - and so we look for a Prince Charming or Fairy Godmother who sees who others don't see and loves us in spite of ourselves.
What is far different from me, however, is that Mary says, "I am the handmaiden of the Lord." She so quickly gave herself so trustingly to the Lord."
Mary is the opposite of Eve. Eve disobeys, hides and tries to take control of herself and the world. Mary obeys and gives herself to God and his kingdom.
In the last couple months, I admire Mary more and more. It's no wonder that God choose her to carry Jesus, to not just be his mother, but to be the one who nurtures him, molds him in the small and significant ways mothers do (for better and for worse). God had to choose a woman who would, with Him, shape his son for the 30 years of his hidden life. Jesus did not just emerge out of nowhere when he went to John the Baptist to be baptized. He, like all of us, was a product of his culture, environment and family. God had to choose carefully. He chose well.
(Again, such a contrast between Mary and Eve.)
Like Fr. Mark, I would like to spend some time with Mary, sitting and talking with her about the Annunciation. Right before the coronavirus broke and sent us into seclusion, I did a "mini-retreat" which centered around an hour of spiritual direction. My spiritual director, a Jesuit priest, Fr. Todd, had me do imaginative exercises on the nativity and the wedding at Cana - with specific emphasis on spending time with Mary. I believe the Holy Spirit is inviting me to now sit with Mary at the Annunciation.
It's a continued thread. But as I live my life, it's all a thread. Everything connects. God want sus to see not the pieces but the whole that he has lovingly created for us since the beginning.
In the beginning, God
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
And it was good.
Yes!
The magic of the moment of go.
That was a lot of loads of laundry ago. So funny!
The decades of stay.
Remain. Abide.
Saying it everyday all our lives.
"You're all right. God sees you and I'm here as a sign and a grace." A visitation
I'm learning to appreciate Mary more and more as well. Joseph too. For all they carried and pondered. A gift to Mary to have Joseph. No one else could understand being chosen to raise the Son of God. He was Mary's too though. Half of her DNA. How did that work? And Joseph left his kind and strong imprint as well, his nurture DNA if not his biology.
A continued thread since the beginning...the never-ending wave and identifiable particle, both = light
There were decades of stay.
Discipleship is about stay.
Staying with the commitment that I made.
May require me to do the same thing over or over.
In my younger adult years, I served as part of a youth ministry team. I always imagined that God might reveal a different calling to me in my 50s. My 50s are more than half over.
The only calling I am sensing is to stay - to stand in place.
I -keep wondering whether there is something more to come.
However, when I think that I sense a new calling, the window closes.
To stay after the years and years have gone by…
This might also mean to return after years and years have gone by.
The last language of Eucharist is the last language of a priest with dementia.
During the early stages of my father’s dementia, he started to pray again.
His girlfriend was amazed at my father’s ability to pray.
She had not really heard him pray during the last ten years that they had together.
His dementia in some ways freed him from the distractions that kept him from praying.